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The explosion in the port of Beirut: The Syrian connection to the purchase of chemicals raises new questions

A Lebanese investigation and documents from Britain reveal that the company that purchased the ammonium nitrate that destroyed the port was linked to two Syrian businessmen close to Assad and who are under US sanctions.

Was the substance, used for fertilization but also to create explosives, intended for Syria at all?

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• Beirut

Reuters

Monday, 18 January 2021, 12:50

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In the video: Sites where the terrorist organization Hezbollah operates to produce precision missile components in the heart of the city of Beirut (IDF Spokesman)

The company that purchased the ammonium nitrate that exploded in the port of Beirut last summer was allegedly linked to two Syrian businessmen who are at a U.S. sanctions station.

According to an investigation by Lebanese journalist Firas Hatum, which aired on Al-Jadid channel over the weekend, the company "Sbarro", which acquired the chemical in 2013, owns an address in London together with companies related to George Hasswani and Imad Khoury.

The two, as well as Imad's brother, Modalal, are under US sanctions for their support of President Bashar Assad.

They all have Syrian-Russian citizenship.

The U.S. Treasury Department accused Modal Khoury in 2015 of "attempting to acquire ammonium nitrate in late 2013."

His brother was put on the sanctions list a year later due to the business they did together.

In 2015, Hasswani was sanctioned for helping the Assad regime purchase oil from ISIS.

He denied it.

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(Photo: AP)

According to an investigation by Reuters at the British Registrar of Companies, Sbarro and the engineering and construction company Hesco, which is linked to Haswani and is under US sanctions, transferred their corporate registration to the same address in London on June 25, 2011.

Dozens of companies can share the same address, but it is rare for them to move to the same address and address, according to documents from hundreds of companies.

The agent who helped register Hesco did not comment on the company's relationship with Sbarro.

It is unclear if Haswani controlled the Sbarro, which could have indicated a possible involvement in the purchase of the materials that exploded at the port of Beirut.

Imad Khoury denied any connection to Sbarro.

His brother Modalal said it "makes no sense" to link the blast to a London-listed company along with many other companies.

The Reuters failed to catch up with Hasswani.

His son said from Moscow that his father was not expected to comment on the allegations because they were "complete nonsense."

(Photo: AP)

The findings raised questions in Lebanon about the possibility that the uranium nitrate, which is used to fertilize but also to create explosives, was supposed to reach Syria.

"We want to investigate this," said Yosef Lahud, a lawyer for about 1,400 victims of the blast.

"It could lead us nowhere or it could be the connecting thread, but we have to explore."

Lebanese Justice Minister Mary Claude Najm told Reuters that the report should be investigated, as should other allegations related to the blast.

The investigation is being conducted by a judge investigator and is secret.

The British Registrar of Companies has identified Marina Pasilo, a citizen of Cyprus, as the director and majority owner of Sbarro since 2016. She replied in an email to Reuters that she is not a director of the company or its owner.

She did not respond to questions about Hasswani.

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